Tony wins help shows at the Broadway box office

MARK KENNEDYJune 16, 2014

NEW YORK (AP) — A best musical Tony Award win has powered “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder” to its best week ever at the box office, but even one of the shows it beat had a record week since the trophies were handed out.

“A Gentleman’s Guide,” in which a poor man comically eliminates the eight heirs ahead of him for a title, took in $851,262 in the week ending Sunday, its highest take so far. Its rival “Beautiful: The Carole King Musical” grossed $1,170,050 over eight shows, shattering the house record at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre.

The best play winner on Sunday, “All the Way” with Bryan Cranston, took in $288,909 more than the previous week to end with $1,229,459. Another winner was “Rocky,” which saw its gross and attendance rise after snagging a spot on the Tony telecast. It grossed $761,451, or $143,461 more than the week before. Plus, some 1,170 more people came to see it, pushing attendance to 8,629.

“Aladdin,” which had James Monroe Iglehart as the Genie turn in a spirited performance of “Friend Like Me” during the show, earned $1,332,137, its biggest weekly take so far. Top premium tickets now go for $252.50.

Not all the shows featured on the telecast did better, including “Cabaret,” which dipped $30,940 to $731,192, and “Violet,” which lost $33,969 from the previous week to earn just $342,638.